Thursday, July 17, 2008

Montessori at Home: More on Strollers

Are you new to Montessori? If so, here are a few tips for making the transition from a stroller to out-of-the-stroller:

Set up the physical environment of your house so that your child can move about and do things independently. You should not need to say "no" or proffer corrections for daily activities, if everything is set up well and stocked with child-sized equipment and furniture.

When you interact with your child, try to kneel down to his or her level and use a normal conversational tone and vocabulary as you speak.

Avoid repeating yourself or raising your voice to get your child's attention. If you feel the need to do this, step back and see what is happening. Do you need to interrupt your child at this moment? If so, can you phrase your question or concern differently? Is there a pattern to this behavior for both of you? How can it be changed to make overall interaction better?

Avoid grabbing your child or physically getting his or her attention. Your child will just stop paying attention to your words, so the result will not be what you desire. If your child is grabbing or breaking things, try to figure out how to prevent it from happening. Is your child bored? Does he or she not have suitably interesting and stimulating equipment with which to work? Does your child know how to hold and touch ordinary objects such as books, plants, and pets in an appropriate manner?